1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to devices used to open bottles or containers having screw-type closures, specifically to a device which can be used by an adult with the palm of one hand to manually open and close childproof caps on medicine bottles and a method for its use. Applications may include, but are not limited to, use by weak patients and those with arthritis for completely autonomous self-dosing of medications.
2. Background--Description of Prior Art
The introduction of childproof caps on medicine bottles and containers used for the storage of other potentially hazardous products has valiant origins, the safety of curious children. Since children's toys generally teach them to rotate objects at an early age, the removal of childproof caps must require complex skills not easily mastered by small children, such as the use of one hand to apply simultaneous squeezing and horizontal twisting forces to the bottle cap; the use of one hand to apply simultaneous downward axial forces and horizontal twisting forces to the bottle cap; and the simultaneous application of a downward force with one hand to a fastening element attached to the bottle, such as a tab, with a horizontal twisting force simultaneously applied with a second hand to the bottle cap. When a childproof container is large and heavy, such as the two-and-one-half gallon containers commonly used for storing and transporting liquid chlorine used in the treatment of swimming pool water, the approximate twenty pound weight of the liquid stored therein holds the container in place so that an operator can use one hand to downwardly press on its cap and simultaneously rotate the cap to successfully separate it from the container. However, the manual opening of small lightweight bottles having childproof caps, such as medicine bottles, requires more hand strength and coordination since rotational forces applied to the bottle cap also tend to rotate the attached bottle unless it is somehow secured during such rotation. It is common practice for medicine bottles to be generally secured with one hand while a second hand attempts to remove the cap. To do so autonomously, a person must tightly grip the bottle between the palm and fingers of one hand, while simultaneously applying both downward axial forces and horizontal twisting forces with his or her other hand to the childproof cap attached thereto to release and remove it from the bottle. Often, an opposed horizontal twisting force is also applied by the hand gripping the bottle. If a horizontal twisting force is applied to the cap without the downward axial force, such as would be expected from a small child, the cap will turn freely in place and remain attached to the bottle.
A significant disadvantage of childproof caps is that they frustrate many adults who do not have the strength or coordination to easily open them. Such adults, particularly those needing frequent medication, must repeatedly rely on others to help them and they can feel a loss of autonomy. As a result, some commercially available products, such as aspirin, are now again being made available with non-childproof caps for use in households without children. Also, some prescription medications are now sold with dual use screw-type caps, which are configured with opposed threaded surfaces that can be alternatively used by inverting the cap, one surface providing a childproof closure and the other surface providing a more easily opened non-childproof closure. It is then left up to the consumer as to which type of closure will be selected for use. Although the non-childproof caps are convenient for adult use, they continue to pose a risk for children. The present invention solves this dilemma by providing a one-handed, quick and easy way for adults to open and close medicine bottles, including those having a childproof screw-type of cap, which allows continued use of childproof caps by adults not otherwise having the strength or coordination to autonomously remove such caps by hand.
The difficulty of opening childproof caps even by able-bodied adults is well recognized. Improvements in childproof caps have been attempted since their introduction to make them easier for the average adult to open. One such improvement involves a tab on the bottle having an upwardly depending angled protrusion attached thereto that engages a plurality of notches on the underside of a screw-type of cap. To open this type of cap, an operator must downwardly press on the tab with the thumb of the hand holding the bottle, while simultaneously using his or her other hand to untwist the cap to release it. Another childproof cap variation involves the alignment of arrows on both the cap and the bottle, with the subsequent application of upwardly directed forces to the cap with one or both of a person's thumbs to separate the cap from the bottle. Although such caps can be more easily released by able-bodied adults than other known types of childproof caps, those in a weakened state, as well as people with arthritis, still may not always have the hand coordination or strength to easily open these types of caps, or do so without pain.
It is also known to have automated opening devices for containers having screw-type closures, as well as devices which assist the manual opening of such containers. However, most of the automated openers are expensive and complex devices with one or more drive means, and in addition have components which independently engage both the bottle and its cap. In contrast, the present invention grips only the bottle to stabilize it so that a quick and easy downward axial force, combined with a simultaneous horizontal twisting force and applied solely by the palm of one adult hand, will cause prompt release of the attached cap. Also, most of the prior art mannual-assist devices for removing caps from bottles grip the bottle cap and require two hands for operation. No prior art device is known having all of the advantages of the present invention.